A software update, or software patch is a piece of software that is designed to update a computer program or data that is associated with a computer program. Some examples of software updates are designed to fix security vulnerabilities, errors that may occur in the program code, or other bugs associated with the computer program. Some computer programs include a functionality to update themselves via the Internet, with minimal user intervention. Software updates can vary in size, from a few kilobytes to hundreds of megabytes.
A software update can be in the form of a fix pack, which also provides an indication of a cumulative collection of code fixes that have been made since the last release of the product. A fix pack can impact a wide array of functions in the corresponding computer program. For example, a fix pack can include a software update, indications of program code fixes in the software update, and functions that the program code fixes update in the corresponding computer program.